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Students Explore Historical Context in Viola Workshops By GARETH ZEHNGUT
During the current academic year, viola students in the studio of Heidi Castleman, Misha Amory, and Hsin-Yun Huang have had the unique opportunity to take part in something called the Historical Performance Project. Those who chose to participate attended a series of workshops covering a broad range of related topics. These workshops have been presented by Edward Klorman, who graduated from Juilliard this past May with a B.M. in viola performance and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in music theory at the CUNY Graduate Center.
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| Violist Edward Klorman (seated in black chair) leading a workshop on January 27 as part of the Historical Performance Project. |
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The project, sponsored by the Garett Albert Special Fund, came about when Mr. Albert, an attorney whom Castleman describes as "a great friend and a supporter of the viola and its literature," asked her if there was anything her students should have been doing that they were not. Reflecting on the question, Castleman realized that "potentially, there was an exciting match between the need to understand various stylistic and instrumental conventions and the expertise that Ed Klorman has in historical performance."Because the presentations were intended for her viola studio, Castleman requested that Klorman focus on a few important pieces in the viola literature, such as the Bach Cello Suites (which are frequently played on the viola), the Stamitz D-Major Viola Concerto, and Schubert's Sonata per Arpeggione. Aside from this, the curriculum was primarily designed by Klorman."My goal in the presentations is to put individual works in a historical context," Klorman explained. "In the Stamitz workshop, for instance, we looked at 18th-century descriptions of Stamitz's playing and of the renowned Mannheim Orchestra (which Charles Burney colorfully described in 1772 as 'an army of generals'). We also examined facsimiles of early editions of the piece, since the notation is often different from modern editions."I won't pretend that there is a simple, one-to-one correlation between each of the historical facts and how I would approach performing the piece," noted Klorman. "But this exploration helps define what the important issues and questions are. It would be silly for me to say that I have all the answers—I don't!—or that a certain interpretation is 'historically accurate' and another is not. All I hope to do is share my concept of the musical world that a particular composer lived in, which, for me, sheds light on the piece and offers new ways to be expressive."So far there have been five workshops: an introductory one focusing on rhetoric, ornamentation, and problems of authenticity; two presentations focusing on Bach's Cello Suites, one titled "The Imaginary Basso Continuo" and the other dealing with contrasts between the French and Italian styles; a workshop on the performance of the Stamitz Concerto in the Mannheim tradition; and a workshop focusing on Schubert's "Arpeggione" Sonata and the style Hongrois. Each session includes a presentation of historical information, demonstrations using recordings or live performances, and an opportunity to play a relevant work and receive feedback from Klorman."Before the project began," said Klorman, "I worried about whether it would be awkward working with students who, just last year, were my peers in Ms. Castleman's studio. It's turned out not to be a problem at all. Education experts often speak of the classroom as a 'community of learners.' I like that idea—that we are all studying the subject together, bouncing ideas off one another, and drawing our own conclusions."Violist Rachael Cooper, who played Schubert's "Arpeggione" Sonata in a recent workshop, described this experience as "enlightening." She said, "Klorman's comments were insightful and challenged me to think more deeply about the musical choices I was making. I came away feeling inspired and motivated, having considered the relevant historical context and being able to make more informed decisions about my interpretation. … Ed navigates the complex (and sometimes confusing) subject with ease, highlighting the most relevant points and making the study of performance practice a simple and enjoyable one."The final workshop of the year will take place on April 7 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 527. Titled "Music Making in Fin-de-Siècle Vienna: Brahms and his Circle," this will be the first workshop that is open to the entire Juilliard community. Klorman describes the topic as "a wonderful one to explore, since we actually have recordings of many of the key players, including Joseph Joachim and even Brahms himself. We'll listen to these, as well as recordings by some piano students of Clara Schumann … There are also some wonderful documents, including a description of Brahms's playing by Fanny Davies (a student of Frau Schumann) and also Brahms correspondence." Adds Klorman: "Balancing all of this information, you begin to get a picture of Brahms's musical personality—his freedom of timing, his wonderful legato, and above all, his sense of connection to the Viennese tradition of Mozart and Beethoven."While many people find historical performance practice a rather daunting and intimidating subject to study, Klorman says it is an excellent tool for answering questions he has about music. His curiosity about the subject was first aroused when a non-musician friend asked him a question about musical notation. "As he asked me about the meaning of different symbols on the page, I began to wonder, 'Do I really know what a sforzando meant for Beethoven, or what dolce meant for Brahms?' Since then, I've tried to read as much as possible about these kinds of questions. It seems nit-picky at first, but over time, you begin to develop a sense for what each composer believed made for a good performance."Though most Juilliard students perform only on modern instruments, this question of what notation really meant for individual composers seems like an excellent motivation for them to study historical performance practice. Castleman echoes Klorman's thoughts about this, saying: "Composers communicate musical ideas through notation. Because notation is a limited tool, whether performing on period or modern instruments, music from earlier epochs demands a familiarity with the knowledge assumed by the musician of the time."Castleman says the project has proved to be "an enormous success for those students who have attended the sessions." Her students' discussions about interpretations of Bach and Stamitz "begin now at a much more informed level, and the results to my ear seem more natural and convincing. In my opinion," continues Castleman, "the only way this project could be more successful is if every Juilliard string player could participate."Gareth Zehngut is a third-year viola student.
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